bringing lucy home

Chapter 23: mountain high

After doing all the tourist, typical things, the four bestfriends chilled out in their hotel wondering what to do next.

"I have a plan," Lucy said, leaning forward and pressing her folded hands to her lips.

The girls all looked at each other. "Well, out with it then," Leah encouraged.

"It's the perfect time of year to go up to the mountains" Lucy said. "We should go snowboarding!"

Keira Jordan and Leah started laughing. "Oh my God," Keira giggled. "None of us know how but you!"

"I'll teach you!" Lucy exclaimed.

"Cos that works well," Leah laughed sarcastically. "Just like you teaching us French."

"I think it's a great idea!" Lucy cried defensively. All the girls did want to get out of the city, so they finally agreed and after getting all their snow gear, rented a car and Lucy drove them 7 hours down to the Alps, where Lucy had made arrangements for a little cabin they could stay in for the time.

The next day they all woke up early as Lucy advised it was best for getting the best snow before other snowboarders carved it up. They all were tired except Lucy, who was excited not only to snowboard and teach her friends, but also for the opportunity to show off in front of them. Lucy underestimated the learning process and immediately took the girls up to the top of the mountain.

Leah had strong anxiety the whole way up the lift, so high in the air suspended by nothing save a wire and with a heavy snowboard strapped to one of her feet, not to mention a bouncy Jordan beside her. Once at the top, and well after everyone had fallen getting off the lift, Lucy began her attempts at teaching.

Jordan seemed to get the hang of it, and pretty soon she was good on both toeside and heelside and could make her way at least several feet without falling. Keira and Leah however did not have this natural inclination and spent most of the morning squirming on the ground, ice in their jackets and pain in their ankles.

"I'm going to take Jord down and we'll be back up for yous," Lucy said. "Try doing what we practiced."

Leah and Keira looked up at her, seething inside. "We're trying, we're f@cking trying!" Leah shouted.

"You'll be ok?" Lucy asked before taking her first run down the mountain with Jordan.

Keira and Leah looked across at each other helplessly before falling back in the snow as children no more than 7 years old flew by them, shredding with ease down the mountain. They wanted to laugh at themselves but were too annoyed with Lucy and Jordan for their success to find humour in the situation.

"Ok, on the count of three I'll try and get up, and then I'll help you up and we can try and go from there," Keira declared. She fell forward onto her knees and then leaned on her hands to flip herself upwards and onto her feet. Then she turned around and held out two hands for Leah. "Ok, here we go. Ready? Three, two, one!" Leah grabbed onto Keira's gloves and tried to pull herself up, but ended up falling forward and sending her Keira backwards, sliding uncontrollably down the mountain.

"Stop!" screamed Keira as they slid faster and faster down, snow building up under her board.

"I can't!" Leah shouted above the crunch of the snow.

They came to a dead halt when the snow pile beneath Keira's snowboard became too much, so sharp a stop that they both were thrown onto their backs from the force. Now they could laugh.

"Oh God what happened," Leah groaned, dropping her head in the snow.

Keira sighed. "I can't believe Lucy and Jord just dipped."

"We'll never make it down," wailed Leah. "Look at us!"

Keira glanced behind her shoulder at the huge, long indent in the snow their tumble had made, a deep trail only about 6 metres long. "We've a long ways to go." She took a deep breath. "Let's try and stand up again, shall we?"

"Can we?" Leah muttered.

Keira rolled her eyes. "Leah, negativity is never getting us down this mountain. Come on, up we go." She struggled for about 2 minutes to get herself up off the ground before twisting around to help Leah up. She dug the front side of her board into the snow to keep her upright, praying the snow didn't give in sending her down the steep slope. She pulled Leah up and for a moment they were both steady and getting themselves ready to attempt going down.

As soon as Keira turned her board sideways, so the lip faced the bottom of the mountain, she began speeding downhill. Leah's board was faced the same way and they still were holding each other's hands as they rocketed down the mountain at incredible speed, the wind and snow whipping in their faces. They both screamed as they soared uncontrollably down the mountain, their bodies facing each other and their boards facing downwards.

"AHHHHHHHHHHH!" Their screams only stopped when they hit a snowdrift and flew at least 4 feet in the air forward, propelled by inertia onto their faces on the ground, their boards and arms twisted around each other.

Leah snapped her head up, spitting out the snow that her face had just gotten buried in. Gasping for breath to fill her cold lungs, she hurried to pull Keiras face out of the snow aswell.

Keira shook ice out of her hair and pulled her goggles up on her head. Her helmet was 3 metres down the hill, and as she pulled herself through the snow to get to it she looked around, realizing they had slid all the way to the bottom of the mountain. She managed to pull herself up and looked around.

"Leah! Leah!" she shouted excitedly. "We made it!"

Leah still lay a metre behind her, laying exhausted on her back. "We what?"

"We made it! We're here at the bottom of the mountain!"

Leah struggled to sit upright in the snow. 'Oh my God, you're right! We did it!"

"Ahahaha!" Keira gleefully fell backwards in the snow where she and Leah lay, grateful they'd made it however disastrous the journey there had been.

Just then, a wave of powder flew in their faces as Jordan and Lucy pulled up beside them at the foot of the mountain.

"What are you mongs doing?" Jordan asked, smiling down at them.

Keira scowled up at her. "We're not talking to yous. Turncoats."

Lucy and Jordan exchanged glances through their goggles. Jordan wrinkled her nose. "Turncoats?"

"You abandoned us at the top of the mountain," Leah said accusingly.

"Well, you're here now," Lucy shrugged. "I knew you'd make it! I'm proud of yous!"

Leah frowned at her. "We're going into the chalet," she said. She was trying to be upset but the look on Jordan's face as she lifted her goggles onto her forehead made her smile. "Stop it!" She playfully smacked Jordan with a gloved hand.

"Don't go," Jordan whimpered, pulling a pathetic face hoping to get Leah's attention.

Leah unstrapped her board from her boots, smiling up at Jordan. "Come with me then."

Jordan looked at Lucy as if asking permission before unstrapping her board and running with Leah to the chalet.

"Join em?" Lucy asked Keira, nodding her head towards Jordan and Leah.

Keira pulled off her helmet. "Only if you come."

Lucy sighed, a smile on her face. "Ok, let's go. I hear France has the best hot chocolate."